Roller face suction box for paper-making machine



1967 JEAN-PIERRE MAUPAS 3,351,523

ROLLER FACE SUCTION BOX FOR PAPERMAKING MACHINE Filed May 21, 1964 5 Sheets-Sheet l I NVENTOR JEAN- PIERRE MAUPAS ATTORNEYS N 7, 1967 JEAN-PIERRE MAUPAS 3,351,523

ROLLER FACE SUCTION BOX FOR PAPER-MAKING MACHINE Filed May 21, 1964 s Sheets-sheaf 2 IN VE' N TOR JEAN-PIERRE MAUPAS Nov. 7, 1967 JEAN-PIERRE .MAUPAS 3,351,523

ROLLER FACE SUCTION BOX FOR PAPERMAKING MACHINE Filed May 21, 1964 v 5 Sheets Sheet 5 INVENTOR JEAN-PIERRE MAUPAS Nov. 7, 1967 JEAN-PIERRE MAUPAS 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 Filed May 21, 1964 Lil 5 mm m NM EE m m up w A E v Nov. 7, 1967 JEAN-PIERRE MAUPAS 3,351,523

ROLLER FACE SUCTION BOX FOR PAPER-MAKING MACHINE Filed May 21, 1964 '5 Sheets-Sheet 5 JEAN- PIERRE MAUPAS N co 1 i x 00 (\l E l I i I m S :i' II I I .2 HJ

INVEN'TGR United States Patent ROLLER FACE SUCTION BOX FOR PAPER-MAKING MACHINE Jean-Pierre Maupas, 48 Rue Jouvenet, Rouen, France Filed May 21, 1964, Ser. No. 369,262 Claims priority, application: France, Dec. 21, 1963, 958,102, Patent 85,008; May 9, 1964, 973,907,

Patent 85,722

4 Claims. (Cl. 162-373) This invention relates to apparatus employed in the extraction or absorption of water from paper pulp, the apparatus being associated with paper pulp processing machinery of the type including a pulp conveying belt and plural roller means.

The main object of the invention is to enable most of the water contained in paper pulp to be absorbed after it has undergone preparatory operations.

Another object of the invention is to create a depression in a chamber defined by sets of contact rollers, so as to extract the water contained in the paper pulp.

Another object of the invention is to make the rollers mobile forming the depression chamber, so as to increase or restrict the entrance to this chamber, to adapt the depression to the amount of material transported.

Another object of the invention is to impart profiles to the ends of the rollers and their fixed parts, so that they can overlap in order to reduce surface contact to a minimum to reduce unecessary wear.

Another object of the invention consists of the production of a carrier roller of larger size than the rollers forming the depression chamber, so as to obtain a better wringing of the paper pulp and also ensure the cleaning of the felt passing between the presser roller and the upper carrier roller.

Other objects and advantages will be revealed by the following description and the attached drawings.

A device according to the invention is shown by way of non-resistrictive example in the attached figures, in which:

FIGURE 1 is a cross sectional view taken axially through one of the rollers carrying material according to the invention,

FIGURE 2 shows a front view of the fixed support and the two small bars on which the belt rubs is engaged outside the two upper rollers.

FIGURE 3 is a diagrammatical view showing the appreciable difference existing between the volume of the presser roller and the upper carrier roller compared with the volume of the upper rollers forming the depression chamber,

FIGURE 4 is a partial view of the device, the latter comprising a lower roller provided with an antifriction ring,

FIGURE 5 is a longitudinal sectional view of the aforesaid lower roller,

FIGURES 6 and 7 are end and elevation views of the device according to an alternative embodiment.

Referring to the drawings in detail, specifically to FIGS. 1 and 2, the suction box according to the invention is defined in part by a pair of fixed supports 26, each of which is provided with two sets of concentric grooves 1 and 2 surrounding a central recess 3 and defining annular profiles 32 and 33. A pair of rollers 28 are supported between the fixed supports 26 for rotation about their longitudinal axes and each roller includes a cylindrical main body 5 having opposite reduced end portions 6 which present outwardly facing annular shoulders 27. Each face of each roller is provided with annular projections 7 and 8 and a central hub 9 separated by annular grooves 30 and 31 and received respectively ice in the corresponding grooves 1 and 2 and central recess 3 of the corresponding support 26, but spaced radially and axially from the fixed support, as shown in FIG. 1, to present a labrynth passage 10.

Sealing belts 14 are trained over the corresponding reduced ends 6 of the rollers 28 and are of slightly less width than the spacing between the outwardly facing shoulders 27 and the inner faces of the corresponding fixed supports 26. Thus, the inner faces of the fixed supports present shoulder portions 29 lying closely adjacent the outer sides of the belts 14. The labrynth passages are filled with water to seal between the end faces of the rollers 28 and the fixed supports 26 and to prevent wear therebetween.

Bars 34 carried by the fixed supports 26 engage the inner sides of the belts 14 between rollers 28. The rollers 28 define a suction gap 11 therebetween, located as shown in FIG. 2, for passage of a span of a traveling felt F (see FIG. 1) thereover. The side boundaries of this gap are defined by the belts 14 which contact and move along with the opposite underside edges of the felt F. One or both of the fixed supports 26 is provided with an opening 12 for the connection to the usual suction pump whereby the region R beneath the span of the traveling felt is subjected to negative pressure. The bottom of the box between the rollers 28 may be sealed in any suitable fashion as, for example, by having the lower bars 34 joined by a sealing plate, not shown. In FIG. 6, the roller 28' provides this function. The belts serve the dual function of sealing the labrynth passages and providing the side boundaries of the suction gap. Actually, the rollers and supports not being under friction, the braking action of the rollers (which might interfere with the proper working of the device) is restricted to its smallest extent.

The belt 14 is made in such width that there is a very slight play between it and the shoulder-piece 27 of the support, the small bars 34 against which it rubs having a tendency to return it against the shoulder-piece of the roller 28.

The present invention also provides a pressure roller 35 placed over the upper rollers 28. This presser roller 35 is pressed on one of the upper rollers 28 by a spring 36, which enables a variable pressure to be obtained that can be regulated between the pressure roller and the upper roller on which it bears.

The pressure roller 35 is made of large size, so that its own weight ensures considerable pressure on the carrier roller 28, which is also of large size so as to be able to stand this pressure.

Moreover, the rollers 28, forming, with the roller 28, the depression chamber, are made smaller so that they can be easily moved.

Actually, in the present case, it is the two rollers 28 which are moved when the user wishes to increase or restrict the entrance to the depression chamber F.

The displacement of these rollers 28 is an angular one in relation to the axis of the upper carrier roller 28'.

To this end, FIGURE 3 shows a different position by dotted lines of the rollers 28 and 28', in the present case, the entrance to the depression chamber being restricted.

This particular arrangement enables the felt and paper pulp itself to be passed on the depression chamber, so as on the one hand-to clean the felt, and-on the other -the better to dry the paper pulp.

According to the embodiment shown in FIGURE 4 and 5 the lower carrier roller 28' of the device comprises, at each of its lateral ends, a ring 40 of plastic material by which contact is made between the lower carrier roller 28 and the belt passing over the upper roller 28 and 28 The ring 40 is placed around a bronze bushing 41 pro- 3 vided at each of the lateral ends of the roller 28 on which it freely revolves.

The rings 40 compensate for the slight difierence of speed which exists between said lower carrier roller and the belt joint.

According to an advantageous form of embodiment as shown in FIGURES 6 and 7, the seal-tight belts 14 at the ends of the rollers, pass under the lower carrier roller 28' i.e., they envelop the three rollers.

The belts 14 revolve in an opposite direction to that 01 said lower carrier roller 28', which is made possible by the presence of the rings 40 revolving freely on the latter It is clearly understood that the invention is not restricted to the examples of embodiment precisely described and shown, and from which other alternatives can be provided without going outside of the scope of the invention for that purpose.

What I claim is:

1. In a suction box device for paper-making machines, in combination:

a pair of spaced, fixed supports, each having concentric grooves therein,

a pair of spaced, parallel imperforate rollers extending between said fixed supports and defining a suction gap therebetween for passage of a span of a traveling felt thereover,

means cooperative with said rollers to define a suction chamber in communication with said suction gap,

each roller having a cylindrical main body and reduced end portions at its opposite ends presenting outwardly facing annular shoulders, and each such end portion terminating in an end face having radially spaced annular projections thereon disposed concentrically of the rotational axis of the roller with the projections on said rollers extending into corresponding grooves in said fixed supports to provide labrynth passages,

an endless belt trained over each of the corresponding reduced ends of said rollers and defining side edge boundaries of said suction gap for contact and movement with the side edges of the traveling felt,

each fixed support having shoulder portions disposed in spaced, aligned opposition with respect to a corresponding roller shoulder,

and each belt being of a Width slightly less than the spacing between the corresponding shoulder portions of the fixed supports and said roller shoulders.

2. In the suction box device according to claim 1 wherein said suction chamber defining means comprises a third roller in tangential contact with both of said pair of rollers, said endless belts each being trained over all three rollers.

3. In the suction box device according to claim 2 wherein said third roller is of larger diameter than said pair of rollers.

4. In the suction box device as defined in claim 2, wherein said third roller has reduced end portions corresponding to the reduced end portions of said pair of rollers with which it is in contact, and a ring of antifriction material journaled on each reduced end of said third roller and in contact with a corresponding endless belt.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,183,273 5/1916 Binns 162366 1,950,853 3/1934 Lamort 162-373 X 2,780,968 2/1957 Heys 162-358 FOREIGN PATENTS 580,972 7/ 1933 Germany.

1,000,679 1/ 1957 Germany.

S. LEON BASHORE, Primary Examiner. 

1. IN A SUCTION BOX DEVICE FOR PAPER-MAKING MACHINES, IN COMBINATION: A PAIR OF SPACED, FIXED SUPPORTS, EACH HAVING CONCENTRIC GROOVES THEREIN, A PAIR OF SPACED, PARALLEL IMPERFORATE ROLLERS EXTENDING BETWEEN SAID FIXED SUPPORTS AND DEFINING A SUCTION GAP THEREBETWEEN FOR PASSAGE OF A SPAN OF A TRAVELING FELT THEREOVER, MEANS COOPERATIVE WAITH SAID ROLLERS TO DEFINE A SUCTION CHAMBER IN COMMUNICATION WITH SAID SUCTION GAP, EACH ROLLER HAVING A CYLINDRICAL MAIN BODY AND REDUCED END PORTIONS AT ITS OPPOSTIE ENDS PRESENTING OUTWARDLY FACING ANNULAR SHOULDERS, AND EACH SUCH END PORTION TERMINATING IN AN END FACE HAVING RADIALLY SPACED ANNULAR PROJECTIONS THEREON DISPOSED CONCENTRICALLY OF THE ROTATIONAL AXIS OF THE ROLLER WITH THE PROJECTIONS ON SAID ROLLERS EXTENDING INTO CORRESPONDING GROOVES IN SAID FIXED SUPPORTS TO PROVIDE LABRYNTH PASSAGES, AN ENDLESS BELT TRAINED OVER EACH OF THE CORRESPONDING REDUCED ENDS OF SAID ROLLERS AND DEFINING SIDE EDGE BOUNDARIES OF SAID SUCTION GAP FOR CONTACT AND MOVEMENT WITH THE SIDE EDGES OF THE TRAVELING FELT, EACH FIXED SUPPORT HAVING SHOULDER PORTIONS DISPOSED IN SPACED, ALIGHED OPPOSITION WITH RESPECT TO A CORRESPONDING ROLLER SHOULDER, AND EACH BELT BEING OF A WDITH SLIGHTLY LESS THAN THE SPACING BETWEEN THE CORRESPONDING SHOULDER PORTIONS OF THE FIXED SUPPORTS AND SAID ROLLER SHOULDERS. 